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Murphy Wins Weather-Plagued Azalea Invitational

University of South Carolina junior Will Murphy came from well off the pace to claim the Azalea Invitational in a one-hole playoff Sunday at the Country Club of Charleston in South Carolina.
Murphy began the final round tied for ninth, four shots behind the leaders, but he shot 3-under-par 68 in very breezy conditions to tie M.J. Maguire at 6-under 207. Maguire, a University of North Florida player, shot 71, punctuated by a final-hole birdie to catch Murphy and force the playoff.
Murphy won with a par on the first extra hole.
Patrick Christovich fired a final-round 70 to grab low mid-amateur honors and a T3 finish with junior Dylan Meyer. Second round co-leader Brennan King, a mid-amateur who is a member at the host club, couldn’t handle the final-round winds and shot 79, falling back to a T11 finish.
For the second year in a row, rain shortened the Azalea. Heavy overnight rains on Friday caused the third round to be cancelled, turning the tournament into a 54- hole affair. That was an improvement on last year, when inclement weather reduced the old-line tournament to 36 holes.